Best and Worst Foods for Bloating

Feeling puffed up after a meal? Keep your digestive system humming along by eating flat-belly foods and avoiding those that bloat.

Credit: Getty Images

1 of 15

Where's that bloat coming from?

by Charlene K. Petitjean

Let's talk about something uncomfortable: gas and bloating. Most of us pass gas anywhere from 12 to 25 times a day, according to Brigham and Women's Hospital, and surveys show that abdominal bloating affects up to 30% of Americans. "Having a perfectly flat stomach all the time isn't normal," says Health contributing nutrition editor Cynthia Sass, MPH, RD. "After you eat and drink, food and liquids take up space inside your stomach and intestines, and that means some expansion."

A ballooned belly doesn't necessarily indicate that something is wrong with what you eat, but if your abdomen is too swollen to squeeze into your jeans, you may want to identify the belly bloaters in your diet.